-In 1869, Edison developed the 

Universal Stock Ticker, one of the earliest practical stock

ticker machines. Tickers quickly transmitted details as they used the existing telegraph
infrastructures. The information was printed on a small paper strip (called the ticker tape) and
contained initials of companies and their share prices. This method was also less expensive as
the information could travel alongside mainstream messages. Stock tickers eventually fell out
of favor with the advent of radio and television in the 1960s.

-Thomas Edison invented the Quadruplex telegraph, in which a single wire could transmit as
many as four separate signals at a time. This was a game changer in the communication
industry. Edison didn’t even fathomed the impact of his invention, for he intended to sell the
new telegraph for only $4000. He was astonished when the first bidder offered $10,000 for
the equipment. This would be equal to roughly $216,000 today. The Quadruplex
telegraphs remained in wide use for over a century. They were useful in rail and water
navigation. Their use only reduced in the early 21st century with the commercialization of
satellite communication.

-Thomas Edison wasn’t the first person to conceive the idea of an electric lamp. There were
many others who had previously devised incandescent lamps. However, these bulbs
had several flaws like having a high cost, an extremely short life and drawing a very large
electric current. These flaws made it impractical to use these bulbs on a large scale
commercially. Edison competed against other researchers to resolve these issues. He realized
that he needed to develop a lamp that used a low amount of current. After many experiments,
he found that a carbon filament was best suited for this. On November 4, 1879, Edison filed
for a patent for an electric lamp using “a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected to
platina contact wires”. This was the first commercially practical incandescent light. It burned
for over 1,000 hours while consuming minimal electricity. Its first demonstration at Menlo
Park attracted many distinguished persons. Edison was able to secure a contract from Oregon
Railroad and Navigation Company, one of the largest navigation companies, to install the
lighting system in their new ship.

-The phonograph is a device for mechanical recording and reproduction of sound. Thomas

Edison invented the phonograph in 1877. It was one of his most remarkable inventions and
the one that first brought him widespread acclaim. The public was in fact so astonished with
Edison’s phonograph that they called him “The Wizard of Menlo Park”. Many people had
experimented with sound recording, but none had managed to reproduce the recorded sound.
Edison’s phonograph consisted of a grooved cylinder coated with tinfoil, a
stylus and a flaring horn. Although its music wasn’t so qualitative, and despite the fact that it
could only capture a few minutes of music for a limited number of times, it is what marked
the beginning of music recording. The phonograph advanced over time until it eventually
gave way to cassettes.
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